HomeMy WebLinkAboutNODC JeffCo Hadlock Sewer Support Letter 03.25.21
PO Box 2526, Port Angeles, WA 98362 • www.noprcd.org • 360-477-1593
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March 25, 2021
Phillip Morely
County Administrator
Jefferson County
1820 Jefferson St
Port Townsend, WA 98368
RE: Letter of Support for Port Hadlock Sewer Project
Dear Mr. Morely,
The North Olympic Peninsula Resource Conservation & Development Council (NODC)
strongly supports Jefferson County, Washington’s Port Hadlock Sewer project. This project
has been in the planning for over 15 years and is essentially shovel-ready, with all property
acquired, and engineering and design work well underway and scheduled for completion
this year.
Since the adoption of the Growth Management Act (GMA), Port Hadlock is the only
designated urban growth area in the County outside of one municipality, Port Townsend.
Many years of planning, public meetings, and legal challenges resulted in Port Hadlock
being the designated receiving zone for density and economic development for
unincorporated Jefferson County.
The County seeks to build the sewer in order to “turn on” the greater density allowed in an
urban growth area, per GMA. Jefferson, like most rural counties, has struggled to make the
project financially feasible given the high startup costs for a new sewer which must initially
be borne by the existing water customers until new development and greater density occur.
Business and property owners, who petitioned the County in 2018 to assess the costs and
benefits of the project, seek to expand their businesses, build housing and develop their
properties without the constraints of septic systems. Until this sewer project is built, growth
and development are stymied.
This is why federal infrastructure funding is so important. It has historically served to bring
basic services like safe drinking water and electrification to marginalized areas that cannot
otherwise afford the capital investments themselves. This project is no different. The Port
Hadlock sewer cannot be financed by the rural property owners alone. NODC supports
Jefferson County’s request for capital funding to off-set costs for this project, which will
serve many low-income families and create jobs, housing and much-needed opportunity to
the region.
De-commissioning of septic systems also has environmental benefits, particularly for a
commercial area that drains to salmon-bearing streams and directly to marine shorelines. A
modern facility will treat wastewater to Class-A water quality standards and infiltrate it
Executive Board President Mark Ozias Clallam County Vice President Kate Dean Jefferson County Secretary Navarra Carr City of Port Angeles Treasurer Brian Kuh EDC Team Jefferson Erika Lindholm Craft3 Karen Goschen Port of Port Angeles Bill Putney Port of Port Townsend Jeff Randall Jefferson PUD Clea Rome WSU Clallam County Extension Members Center for Inclusive Entrepreneurship City of Forks City of Port Angeles City of Port Townsend City of Sequim Clallam EDC Clallam PUD Clallam Transit Dungeness Valley Creamery Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe Jefferson Community Foundation Jefferson Land Trust North Olympic Land Trust Northwest School of Wooden Boat Building Peninsula College Port Townsend Food Co-op Port Townsend Foundry, LLC WSU Jefferson County Extension
back into the groundwater, supplementing a basin that experiences low flows in the summer
when endangered summer chum need it most.
We join the voices of affordable housing providers, existing businesses, and venerable public
institutions such as the local school and library in supporting this #1 priority infrastructure
project in Jefferson County. Jefferson County, the City of Port Townsend, the Port of Port
Townsend and Jefferson Public Utility District formed the Intergovernmental Collaborative
Group (ICG) in 2020, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. NODC’s support of the Port
Hadlock sewer project is a demonstration of the work the ICG is doing to strategically identify
and problem-solve the complex issues facing North Olympic Peninsula communities.
This project is consistent with the call in the 2016-2020 Comprehensive Economic Development
Strategy (CEDS) for the region to “invest in place-based initiatives that further our triple bottom
line objectives of economic prosperity, environmental sustainability and social equity” and is on
the key project list in the 2020 CEDS update.
Thank you for your support of rural, maritime communities like ours. We strive to be good
partners in carrying out responsible growth management and creating equitable opportunities for
area residents. The NODC is pleased to support Jefferson County’s request for funding for this
important project.
Sincerely,
Karen Affeld
Executive Director